Shopper Update: A Profile of Homebuyers in the Tax Credit Era, July 2010

During the period that spanned the availability of federal homebuyer tax credits (January 2009 through April 2010), the young and affluent were the most likely to be buying new homes. The young were prompted to buy homes largely by tax credits while the wealthy, many of whom likely did not qualify for a tax credit, mostly were trolling for cheap foreclosed homes. Among Gen Y and Gen X homebuyers, savings/debt repayment is the most common use for the tax credit proceeds. Boomers are more likely to spend the proceeds on their homes. The data suggest retailers and suppliers should target shoppers up and down the age and income spectrums to grab share of tax credits in the near term, and heighten efforts over the long term to sell to the swell of younger households that are formed in the coming years.